U.S. unemployment rate falls to 7.7% as 146,000 jobs added

By The Associated Press

Posted: December 7, 2012 at 7:52 a.m.Updated: December 7, 2012 at 11:50 a.m.

WASHINGTON  The U.S. economy added 146,000 jobs in November and the unemployment rate fell to 7.7 percent, the lowest since December 2008. The government said superstorm Sandy had only a minimal effect on the figures.

The Labor Department’s report Friday offered a mixed picture for the economy.

Hiring remained steady during the storm and in the face of looming tax increases.

But, the government said, employers added 49,000 fewer jobs in October and September than initially estimated.

And the unemployment rate fell to a four-year low in November from 7.9 percent in October, mostly because more people stopped looking for work and weren’t counted as unemployed.